JhumriTelaiya

JhumriTelaiya is a small town in Koderma subdivision. Jhumri is the name of the original village in the area, which is now in the town. The word “Telaiya” is the Hindi word for a small lake. It was once an important centre for mica mining. When the British laid a railway line through Koderma in the 1890s, they discovered large deposits of mica in the region for the first time. Soon after, mining activities began and many mining houses were established. Originally a little-known town, JhumriTelaiya became famous in India in the 1950s through its association with radio stations such as Radio Ceylon and Vividh Bharati of All India Radio. At a time when radio programmes were a national phenomenon, most requests for film songs received by the stations came from JhumriTelaiya. The trend started in the early 1950s when a mica businessman named Rameshwar Prasad Barn wal started sending 20-25 song requests to Radio Ceylon daily. Barnwal’s name, which he heard reg ularly on the radio, inspired paan shopkeeper Ganga Prasad Magadhiya and electronics shopkeeper Nandlal Sinha to follow suit. The growing fame of these three residents of JhumriTelaiya led to the townspeople asking for songs. Young listeners from the town competed among themselves to see who could send the most song requests in a day or in a month. Radio listeners thus became familiar with the town of JhumriTelaiya. This fad declined when television gained popularity. The reference to Jhumri Talaiya is often found in various Hindi films and songs. In Moun to (1975), there is a song titled Mein Toh JhumriTelaiya Se Aayi Hun (“I have come from JhumriTelaiya”).